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New Macbook vs. Refurb Macbook

J

Jlizard27

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Apr 24, 2008
12
0
Hey guys, there is probably another post that is like this, but I searched for awhile and could not find it, so I'm posting my own.

I am getting a Macbook in a month for sure, but I don't know whether to go for the Refurb Macbook or spend a few hundred bucks more and get a new Macbook with a slightly bigger HD. Thanks in advance for help.
 
Get the refurbished one and buy a bigger hard drive later. Terribly easy to install and you get a nice candidate for an external drive as well.
 
if your good with tech stuff...go ahead with wat the person above me said. If not, you might wanna get a new one. All depends.
 
Memory and HDD are cakewalks to install on a MacBook. Heck, Apple darn near includes instructions on how to do it in the battery bay.

So I'd get the refurb with AppleCare and put the money into more memory and (likely) a larger HDD then you could get new.
 
I just got a refurbish macbook and i love it and i upgraded the ram to 2gb and it is one of the best computers i have ever brought Good Luck
 
do you need that hard drive space?

Personal, I'd consider it, so all my files would be on my laptop(although that might be a huge hard drive, depend on your needs...at which point , forget it, and buy an external disk)
 
whatever you do get at least 2gb of ram :)

but i would get the refurbished probably.

But if you have a student discount the price is similar since you can't get the discount on refurbished macbooks.
 
Get the refurb. You'll actually be buying the Mac at the price it should have been originally ;)
 
well you could go refurb for 999 or 1049 what ever color you want but if you want a new whitebook for 1094 go to newegg.com under apple laptops they have last gen 2.2 white for ^ that that is the way im going here in like a week o yea no taxes no newegg
 
Like everything else, not all refurbs are perfect. I just returned a MacBook with a defective combo drive. I suspect your odds are pretty good, however, of getting a great deal and a nice computer going the refurb route.
 
I've been really curious about one single thing on refurbs, though.

Are the outside plastic shell, the keyboard area, and everything else, is practically "without a scratch"? Or is it "very slightly" used looking?
 
Supposedly, all refurbished Apple Hardware is supposed to be in "new" condition. It apparently has been checked for scratches and dings and such and all traces of use have been removed. Supposedly.
 
My refurb white Macbook looked completely new. I couldn't find a single flaw. I don't think I'll ever buy a Mac new again.
 
Zegna said:
I've been really curious about one single thing on refurbs, though.

Are the outside plastic shell, the keyboard area, and everything else, is practically "without a scratch"? Or is it "very slightly" used looking?
Click to expand...

If anyone was to look at my black refurb macbook I would defy them to be able to say it's NOT new! Mine and many others came in and we can not tell that it was not a new computer. I would not hesitate to buy another refurb. I understand your concern as that was mine also, but not any more--))) Hope that helps! ;)
 
I would wholeheartedly recommned a s refurb. My refurb Blackbook was perfect with no signs use at all on the machine, although wierdly it came with an incorrect power adapter. Apple sent me a new one quite happily when I phoned them though.

If you are considering a refurb you might want to think about timing though. Not sure if it is the same where you are but here in the UK the refurb prices vary quite a lot. I bought my Blackbook SR2.2 just after the current model was released. I think at this time they must have had excess stock and wanted to shift the old model as I was able to buy with 31% of list price. Since then the price for the machine in the refurb store has gone up and at the moment the same spec machine is only 16% off. So timing appears to be important, perhaps the cheapest time is right after a new model is released. Might be interesting to see what happens iMac prices in the refurb store in the next couple of weeks.

I'm entitled to HE education discount which in the UK is 15% so it wouldn't have been be worth it for me but for the extra saving.

Hope this helps.
 
chapmac said:
I would wholeheartedly recommned a s refurb. My refurb Blackbook was perfect with no signs use at all on the machine, although wierdly it came with an incorrect power adapter. Apple sent me a new one quite happily when I phoned them though.

If you are considering a refurb you might want to think about timing though. Not sure if it is the same where you are but here in the UK the refurb prices vary quite a lot. I bought my Blackbook SR2.2 just after the current model was released. I think at this time they must have had excess stock and wanted to shift the old model as I was able to buy with 31% of list price. Since then the price for the machine in the refurb store has gone up and at the moment the same spec machine is only 16% off. So timing appears to be important, perhaps the cheapest time is right after a new model is released. Might be interesting to see what happens iMac prices in the refurb store in the next couple of weeks.

I'm entitled to HE education discount which in the UK is 15% so it wouldn't have been be worth it for me but for the extra saving.

Hope this helps.
Click to expand...
That is exactly what happened to me. I bought my black MB right after the new model (at the time) was released. The new price was $1499 and the refurb had been $1299 (current model at the time), but the day the new ones came out the same refurb (now one generation old) went down to $1049. The price was too good to pass up so I bought it immediately. I have not seen these kind of prices since then. It has been absolutely flawless in every way, and you would never have known it was not new.
 
My friend got a refurb and it had a couple of very faint scratches on the base, but you'll get that after a few days use of a new one anyway.
 
Zegna said:
I've been really curious about one single thing on refurbs, though.

Are the outside plastic shell, the keyboard area, and everything else, is practically "without a scratch"? Or is it "very slightly" used looking?
Click to expand...

my black refurb has a tiny area near the battery where the paint flaked off (looks shiny). It also had a "squishy" trackpad button, which has already been fixed by apple. Overall, I'm very happy with it. $1050 for a refurb 2.2 is a lot better than $1500 for a new 2.4, IMO.
 
iknowyourider said:
About prices; I have been looking at refurbs daily for a month. The prices/availability go up and down almost daily. Today they had no black ones.
Click to expand...

Yep they sell quickly! There's a widget out there that monitors the apple refurb store. IM not sure of the name though! Sorry!
 
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